Early iPhone prototype is fugly, huge, not very phone-like

More like an iPad

Huge, chunky, ugly slabs of grey aren't exactly the design aesthetic we've come to expect from Apple in its line of iDevices, but these photos show how the iPhone started out as just that.

The pictures of this early iPhone prototype come from an ex-Apple employee who shared them with verbose tech blog Ars Technica.

The device shown has more in common with an iPad than an iPhone, with dimensions of 5-inches x 7-inches - and thickness-wise it's closer to a MacBook with a depth of 2-inches to contend with. Not exactly pocket-friendly.

Is that an iPhone in your pocket... [credit: Ars Technica]

But it was never designed to be - this early model was intended to allow devs to nail down what would eventually become iOS. And while it may seem big to us, the source pointed out, "At the time, it was really impressive seeing basically a version of OS X running on it."

It came with USB, ethernet and serial ports which were all for the same purpose and probably would never have made it to the finished iPhone, although the source notes that "at that early date, no one knew what [the final device] would be".

...or are you just really pleased to see us? [credit: Ars Technica]

We're glad the design has moved on a step or two since then, that's for sure, and we're expecting the iPhone 6 to be a little more refined.